Full name prince - Al Waleed ibn Talal ibn Abdul Aziz Al Saud. His grandfather, Abdul Azis ibn Saud, was the founder of the country of Saudi Arabia. His father, Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz, was Minister of Finance, and his mother, Princess Mona, is the daughter of Lebanese Prime Minister Riad Solha. Born on March 7, 1955 into the royal family.

The boy had a hard time with his parents’ divorce and stayed to live with his mother in Lebanon, the most democratic and Europeanized country in the Middle East. But just before the start civil war in Lebanon, Al Walid became interested in the national idea and almost became a supporter of Yasser Arafat. The father intervened and sent his son to the King Abdulaziz Military Academy.

The young man did not like this decision, but tradition demanded that he submit to his father’s will. Later, he realized that his father was right - the academy saved him from participating in terrorism and gave him the skills of self-discipline.

Then the prince went to study overseas. First to Merlot College in California, then to Syracuse University, where he received a bachelor's degree in business administration, and then a master's degree in political science and economics.

He returned to his homeland in 1979, during the “land rush”. With 15 thousand dollars donated by his father, Al-Waleed organized the Kingdom company and engaged in land speculation, which brought him $2 million.

After the death of his father, the prince inherited a house that was mortgaged for $1.5 million. In 1986, having pooled funds, he unexpectedly bought up the Saudi Commercial Bank; bankruptcy was predicted for him. However, just two years later the second-rate bank made a profit, and soon absorbed the Saudi Cairo Bank, which had previously been many times larger than it in terms of turnover.

The next, and no less successful, business was the purchase of Arabian real estate. He owns a three hundred meter skyscraper in the center of the Arabian capital. However, by his own admission, the greatest income came from the so-called “commissions” received for concluding transactions, they are very common in the Middle East. No company can obtain contracts without the help of princes or other high-ranking persons, and this is not considered reprehensible. The commission is usually 30% of the contract value.

At the age of 34, Al-Walid entered the global investment market. For $550 million, he bought a 9.9% stake in the American bank Citicorp, at that time the company was in a state of financial crisis. Analysts regarded the prince's actions as a gamble and considered them the whim of an overly rich man. However, seven years later, the value of the purchased shares increased 12 times. And Forbes magazine, echoed by Bill Gates, ranked Al-Walid among the most successful businessmen in the world.

In the summer of 1994, Al-Walid again “shocked” financial world. He acquired a 24.8% stake in the bankrupt Euro Disney amusement park located near Paris for $350 million. And just a year later, his stake increased in price to $600 million. And this can hardly be called just luck; the prince suggested that the fall in the shares of this enterprise is associated with a temporary economic downturn in Europe.

In addition, together with Michael Jackson, he organized the Kingdom of Entertainment Corporation. In the second half of the 90s he was actively involved in hotel business. Became a major shareholder of the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain, the Fairmont group, the Swiss hotel chain Movenpick, and the Four Seasons hotel chain.

In the spring of 2000, during the collapse of stock market indicators, when high-tech investors were threatened with huge losses, the prince remained confident that stock market indicators would creep up again. A month later, he had already invested a billion dollars in 15 world-famous IT companies and acquired shares of Internet providers. Al Waleed, together with Bill Gates and Craig McCaw, participated in the Teledesic project (provides Internet access from anywhere in the world).

Al-Walid's empire includes banks, television channels, publishing houses, construction companies, hotels, agricultural enterprises, retail, production of automobiles and industrial equipment, production of electronic equipment, computers and computer programs.

Al-Waleed very religious: does not drink, does not smoke, does not buy shares of companies producing tobacco and alcohol products, his wives were never photographed, because this is prohibited by religion. He also built a luxurious mosque in Riyadh. However, without gambling himself, the prince receives huge profits from gambling... and pointedly spends them on charity. And contrary to the opinion of Muslim jurists, Al-Walid does not consider it sinful to provide money with interest (loans).

The prince stays as far away from politics as possible; among his partners there are many Jews, which is not typical for a Muslim. At the same time, it is known that the prince donated $27 million to the needs of Palestinians fighting against the occupation of lands captured by Israel. He did not shy away from his assessment of the September 11 terrorist attacks: “The US government should reconsider its Middle East policy and take a more balanced position towards the Palestinians.” And he allocated $10 million for people affected by the terrorist attack. Outraged, New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani rejected the money, calling the prince’s statement “completely irresponsible,” “dangerous,” and “unfriendly to American politics.” In response, the prince stated: “The United States must understand the causes and roots of terrorism and their connection with the Palestinian problem,” and handed the New York City Hall a check for 10 million, declaring that he would not give another cent if he was refused again.

The prince values ​​reliable information very much; his team consists of about 400 people, whose maintenance costs $1 million a month. These people accompany him always and everywhere, creating a whole caravan of special vehicles.

Al-Walid explains the reasons for his success as follows: “I work a lot when necessary - 15-20 hours in a row... And one more thing: if you are successful in business, then new business will come to you. I am religious, and this is a valuable help for me. If you prosper thanks to Allah, then you must always remain humble and help the poor, otherwise Allah will punish you.”

He gets up at 10 o'clock in the morning, then does fifteen minutes of exercise and has breakfast. From 11 to 16 hours he works in the office, from 16 to 17 - lunch and a little rest. From 19:00 to 2:00 am he works in the office. The next three hours are devoted to exercise, jogging and swimming in the pool, lunch and prayer. The prince goes to bed at 5 o'clock in the morning. He eats little and has a well-known self-description: “I am a calorie counter.”

Personal life, as the press claims, did not work out. He was married twice and divorced both times. When asked by journalists, the prince replies that he has 100 wives and their portraits adorn the walls of his office; these portraits are the emblems of his companies.

The prince lives alone, but adores his two children, Khaleda and Rome, for whom a palace of 317 rooms was built and a collection of 300 cars was collected.

Leisure Al-Waleed spends either on the French Riviera or in his own villa near Riyadh in the company of Bedouins. They are rumored to drink the strongest Arabic coffee and talk about the eternal.

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They say that the owner of this “flying palace” based on the Airbus A380 for 500 million dollars, saudi prince al-Waleed bin Talal was very upset to learn that in the Forbes ranking for 2013, he took only 26th place among richest people planets. Well, all that remains is to sympathize with the prince and wish him success.
Meanwhile, let's take a look at the interior of his personal plane (and not the only one, of course, you understand, the status does not allow it), which has been built for him since 2007. This aircraft has on board a garage for two Rolls-Royce cars, a prayer room that can rotate (to always be directed towards Mecca), as well as a stable for horses and camels.
There is also a swimming pool and sauna on board the ship (why?). Now attention! On top of everything else, the prince decided to literally gild his airbus so that everyone would be safe! Plating the plane's body with gold cost Arab prince at 58 million dollars...

By the way, Saudi Arabia is not very popular among tourists, but its neighbors, the United Arab Emirates, are very much so! Here
www.optio-travel.ru/oaae.jdx we are looking for a suitable tour to the UAE and enjoying the beauty and luxury of Dubai or Abu Dhabi.

A few facts about the prince: Al-Waleed ibn Talal ibn Abdulaziz Al Saud was born on March 7, 1955, a member of the Saudi royal family, entrepreneur and international investor. He made his fortune through investment projects and buying shares.
Al-Waleed holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master's degree. He was also awarded a PhD from the International University of Exeter. He was divorced twice. In 2006, he met his third wife, Princess Amire, and proposed to her. Has two children: Prince Khaled and Princess Reem.
Alwaleed began his business career in 1979 after graduating from Menlo College. He took out a $300,000 loan and became an intermediary for foreign firms wanting to do business in Saudi Arabia.
He collaborated with Bill Gates as one of the co-owners of Four Seasons Hotels, and in 2004 supported Microsoft's expansion into Saudi Arabia.

Elena Mordashova, ex-wife « steel king", lives in Moscow. Today she works at commercial company and does not want to discuss the fate and actions of her husband. She considers her attempt six years ago to take revenge for her ruined life and abandoned son to be stupid and naive. She is not going to repeat it. The one who has the right more money, she is sure.

Mordashov’s son, Ilya, did not want to take his father’s surname and took his mother’s surname. Ilya studies at the institute, where he is known not as the exiled heir to the steel empire, but as a taciturn and reserved guy. Ilya doesn’t tell anyone about the father he met last time more than seven years ago.

Former Severstal CEO Yuri Lipukhin after his “overthrow” from his post general director The plant gave only one long interview. Lipukhin's children and relatives protect their elderly father from the obsessive attention of the press and those who are trying to use the former head of the plant to attack Mordashov. Most of the time Lipukhin lives in Sochi, reading books and tending to the garden.

In his new marriage, Alexei Mordashov had three children...

$21 billion

Prince al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud

Prince Al-Walid bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud

The wealth of the ruling Saudi dynasty is not usually associated with business acumen, financial luck or hard work. The only exception is the multi-billion dollar fortune of Prince al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud. Becoming chairman of his own company at age 14 and a billionaire at age 31, Prince al-Waleed, now 51, is the quintessential Western businessman, a self-made man with a net worth now estimated at $21 billion.

At the beginning of the 20th century, King Ibn Saud, with fire and sword, managed to unite the disparate tribes of the Arabian Peninsula into one state. Since 1932, the Saudi dynasty has been the ruling royal dynasty of Saudi Arabia and the custodian of one of the main Muslim shrines - the Kaaba temple in Mecca. The Al-Saud clan has more than a thousand princes and princesses. The most famous of them, Prince al-Walid, stands out not only for the size of his fortune, but also for his high hierarchical position in the clan: he is the nephew of the current king of Saudi Arabia.

Al-Waleed was born in 1957 from the marriage of a prince of the blood of the royal family of Saudi Arabia and the daughter of the first prime minister of Lebanon. The parents divorced when the child was three years old, and the boy lived with his mother in Beirut until his 11th birthday. The young scion of the royal family was sent to America to receive an education. Here the prince graduated from Menlo College in San Francisco (he has a bachelor's degree in business administration) and a master's degree in social sciences Syracuse University in New York.

A follower and guardian of Wahhabism in America is addicted to morning jogging, fell in love with Coca-Cola, mastered the ability to carry business suits and, they say, he was even an active participant in riotous student parties.

The prince began his business activities in 1979 by providing intermediary services to foreign companies that wanted to do business with Saudi Arabia. Given the prince's closeness to the royal family and his informal influence in the region, the start was successful. In 1980, al-Waleed bin Talal established the Mamlaka company (in English, Kingdom). He himself says that he created the business with the help of $30,000 borrowed from his father and a $400,000 loan secured by a house donated by his parent. Al-Walid continued to actively take advantage of his privileged position, receiving lucrative construction contracts and buying at reduced prices land for subsequent resale. However, according to al-Walid himself, his contracts and real estate transactions in the Riyadh region were nothing more than “a blip on the radar screen.” The metaphor used by the prince cannot be called anything other than a Freudian slip: at that time the war occupied the prince even more than business.

The war in Afghanistan was sacred for devout Muslims. The Saudi dynasty, at the head of Wahhabism, could not remain aloof from the events in Afghanistan. And al-Walid actively helped the Afghan Mujahideen in the fight against Soviet Union. In 1981, the prince even had a chance to visit training camps in Peshawar, where the Mujahideen underwent combat training. However, after withdrawal Soviet troops from the territory of Afghanistan in 1989 and the beginning of the civil war in this country, al-Walid stopped sending money there. According to him, he made his last donation to the Mujahideen in April 1990, giving them $5.4 million.

This weekend, mass arrests of members of the royal family and people associated with it took place in Saudi Arabia. Among the corruption suspects was Prince Al-Waleed, who tried to establish ties with Russia

Al-Waleed (Photo: Philippe Wojazer/Reuters)

“They put personal interests above public interests”

On the evening of November 4, the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, issued a decree to combat corruption and stated that he intends to completely put an end to abuses in the country's power structures. As the monarch explained, in the highest government circles there were people “who put their personal interests above public interests” in order to illegally enrich themselves.

Shortly after this, the Al Arabiya TV channel reported mass arrests: 11 members of the royal family of Saudi Arabia, four current and “dozens” of former ministers were suspected of corruption. Among them are Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and former head Ministries national guard Prince Mitab bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. What exactly the representatives of the Saudi dynasty did is not explained. However, Bloomberg reported that Al-Waleed, in particular, was detained at his camp in the desert.

On Monday, November 6, a senior Saudi official said. Billionaire Al-Walid is suspected of money laundering, bribery and extortion from officials. Prince Mitab bin Abdullah accused of embezzlement, hiring dead souls, transferring government contracts to their own companies, among which is a $10 billion deal for the supply of walkie-talkies and body armor. Former Finance Minister Ibrahim al-Assaf is accused of embezzling funds during the expansion of the Great Mosque of Mecca. In addition, he is suspected of using his official position and confidential information when carrying out land transactions. The ex-governor of Riyadh, Prince Turki ibn Abdullah, according to the authorities, also provided contracts own companies, and also committed abuses during the construction of the metro.

Prince vs Prince

Against the backdrop of fragmentary data from Saudi Arabia, different versions, what goal the 81-year-old monarch pursued. As reported by Bloomberg, the detentions only strengthened rumors that King Salman was thereby clearing the way to the throne for his 32-year-old son, Mohammed bin Salman Al-Saud. It was his supporter Khaled Ayyaf who replaced Mitab as head of the Ministry of the National Guard. The agency’s interlocutors pointed to the fact that in recent months, responsible positions were occupied by people from the environment crown prince, and Mitab barely held his position.

Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (Photo: Yuri Kochetkov/EPA)

Middle East expert Hani Sabra told Bloomberg that the crown prince's rise had previously caused resentment among many influential Saudis. Now that Khaled Ayyaf has headed the department, which was considered a stronghold of the clan of the former King Abdullah, it is almost impossible to predict the reaction within the royal family.

Experts were very surprised by the detention of Al-Walid, who had repeatedly expressed his loyalty to both King Salman and his son. For example, in September, a huge portrait of the monarch was displayed on the Alwaleed Kingdom Tower skyscraper in honor of national holiday. However, Market Watch indicates that the prince may have been remembered by his relatives. If Al-Walid himself did not claim a leading role in governing the state, then his father Talal bin Abdul Aziz actively opposed the promotion of Prince Mohammed. The publication's sources associate the rapid purge within the ruling dynasty with the alleged by decision Salman will retire at the end of this year or early next year.

Facing Iran and back to Trump

Al-Walid's detention raised eyebrows among his business partners. According to The New York Times, it was no coincidence that he was called the Warren Buffett of the Middle East. Forbes estimates Prince Alwaleed's fortune at $18 billion, which puts him 45th in the ranking of the world's richest people. He owns a 95% stake in Kingdom Holding and is the largest shareholder of one of the international financial conglomerates Citigroup (more than 6% of shares). He also owns shares in companies such as Four Seasons (together with Bill Gates they own 95% of the shares), Twitter, 21st Century Fox, Disney. He also owns the George V Hotel in Paris and the Plaza Hotel in New York.

As The New York Times points out, the prince's arrest was carried out against the backdrop of strengthening friendship between Prince Mohammed and American President Donald Trump. Al-Waleed, despite the difficult relations between Riyadh and Tehran, was planning to invest in the Iranian economy several years ago and abandoned this idea due to the hard position of King Salman. Mohammed, in his views on Tehran, does not contradict Trump in any way.

Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud and Donald Trump (Photo: Mandel Morgan/EPA)

It is worth noting that Trump’s relationship with Al-Walid did not work out. Even during the election campaign in the United States, businessmen exchanged barbs. The prince named the Republican candidate "